Taking bribes; a crime against the employer

WITH the current international financial crisis, credit crunch, spiralling prices of goods, job losses and scarcity of new jobs, it is not surprising that the use of bribery and corruption for the purposes of satisfying needs is thriving.
Frequently it is employees who are involved in practising corruption or giving or receiving bribes.
Bribery is defined in the Collins Concise Dictionary as "the act of giving something, often illegally, to a person to procure services or gain influence". Corruption is defined as "to be involved in bribery or other dishonest practices".
Normally, the word "corruption" is used to refer to the conduct of a person who accepts a bribe.
Employers are victims of bribery and corruption in a number of different ways:

·          The company buyer could accept a bribe from a supplier in return for agreeing to order the supplier's products instead of those of other potential suppliers.

·          A company executive could bribe a potential client to award the company a tender.

·          A human resources official could accept a bribe in return for giving a job applicant a post.

·          A government official could be bribed to turn a blind eye to safety contraventions or other irregularities.

·          A bank official could be bribed to grant to a client a loan that would not normally be granted due to the client's failure to qualify for the loan.

·          A building inspector could be bribed to ignore contraventions of building regulations.

·          A judge or arbitrator could accept a bribe in return for making an order, ruling or award in favour of the giver of the bribe.

·          Traffic officers could be bribed to persuade them not to issue a motorist with a traffic fine.

·          Police officers and prosecution officials could be bribed to tamper with evidence or to "lose" case files.

·          A cabinet minister or state official could receive a vehicle or money in return for awarding an armament's contract to the payer of the bribe.
In order to stamp out these practices employers need to bring criminal charges against employees who perpetrate these crimes. However, in addition, employers need to bring disciplinary proceedings against such employees.